The Foreign Ministry has decided to introduce a new type of official development assistance, initiated by Japan's local governments, to finance projects for foreign countries.
Ministry sources said Sunday the ministry will launch the new program in fiscal 2003. The goal is to rejuvenate Japan's ODA and respond to criticism that conventional ODA projects are standardized and tend to focus on big public works, such as huge dams and roads.
The new ODA will support local government aid projects to foreign countries, such as those involving tree planting and the training of municipal officials, according to the sources.
Such ODA will also likely benefit Japan's local governments by boosting international exchanges at the local level and raising the profile of Japanese municipalities abroad, according to the sources.
The ministry plans to submit a request for funding by the deadline at the end of this month for fiscal 2003 budgetary allocations. The funds would help launch the new system and cover related expenses, the sources said.